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V. DETERMINING CHILD CARE MARKET RATES Child Care Market Rate Survey 2023 Page | 33

3. Type Imputed Rates As shown in Table 20, when there were not 50 children in an age category across star levels, but there were at least 50 children in all age category combined for a specific type of care (center versus home), a type imputed rate was generated. The same imputation method that was used for age- imputed rates was performed. Consequently, the larger of the type imputed rate or the county 75th percentile rate becomes the model rate, thus holding the county rate harmless. After the model rate was determined, the final adjusted rate was developed using the same weighted linear regression that was used with age-adjusted rates. Table 20. Type Imputed Rates for Two-Year-Olds for Centers (County B Example): 2023. Rate Star Rating One-Star Two-Star Three-Star Four-Star Five-Star Number of Children=19 3 0 7 9 0 County 75th Percentile Rate $477.00 N/A $650.00 $540.00 N/A State Rate $693.00 $552.00 $723.00 $765.00 $997.00 Type Mean Difference ($154.00) ($154.00) ($154.00) ($154.00) ($154.00) Type Imputed Rate $540.00 $399.00 $570.00 $611.00 $843.00 Source Type Imputed Type Imputed County 75th > Type Imputed Type Imputed Type Imputed Model Rate $540.00 $399.00 $650.00 $611.00 $843.00 Final Adjusted Rate $541.00 $553.00 $586.00 $650.00 $756.00

4. Countywide Imputed Rates Table 21 shows how data was used to develop rates when there were not at least 50 children in a type of care within a county. Since there were less than 50 children in all homes within the county, all children within the county (centers and homes) were used to impute rates. These rates are referred to as countywide imputed rates. The imputation method changes for developing countywide imputed rates because all children in the county are utilized. The imputation in this case was performed by subtracting the weighted mean percent difference of the county's 75th percentile rate from the state's 75th percentile rate and then applying that difference to the state's 75th percentile rate at each star level. After the countywide rates were imputed, the same procedures for determining the model rates and the final adjusted rates were implemented. With the exception of one county in the 2021 analysis, countywide imputed rates were used to develop rates for only homes.